This invention relates to a card conveyance mechanism used in a card reader so as to deliver a card in a card travel path to a predetermined position to discharge the card.
Recently, various cards have been used in many fields. When a card is inserted into a card reader, necessary information is written to an information recording portion of the card by a recording and reproducing means, such as a magnetic head, provided in the card reader, or information written to the information recording portion is reproduced by the recording and reproducing means.
In a card conveyance mechanism provided in such a card reader, feed mechanisms such as rubber rollers are provided in a card travel path, and these feed mechanisms are operated by a predetermined drive source through belts or the like.
However, in the card reader provided with such a card conveyance mechanism, slip may occur in the rubber rollers or the belts which transmit a conveyance force to the card. When slip occur in the rubber roller or the belt, the card in the card reader is brought into a jammed condition, so that the travel of the card becomes abnormal. Such card travel condition is always detected by predetermined position sensors, and the stop condition of the card is detected by the plurality of position sensors arranged at intervals slightly shorter than the length of the card. When the abnormal travel (i.e., the stop) of the card is detected, an alarm is generated since a system, such as an auto tellers machine (ATM) and a cash dispenser (CD), can not properly perform the processing, and the whole system is stopped. Conventionally, such a jammed condition of the card has been dealt with by a manual discharge of the card, as disclosed in Japanese Laid-Open (Kokai) Patent Application No. 72398/76, Japanese Utility Model Publication No. 17712/78 and Japanese Laid-Open Utility Model Application No. 9153/81. Therefore, in order to restore the system, assistance of an operator is needed.